A blog about homebrewing and craft beer in South Africa

1000 or Zero IBU

Brewers more or less compete in brewing beer with the highest International Bitter Unit (IBU). In 2010 the Danish brewer Mikkeller brewed a beer with a theoretical IBU of 1000 (named Mikkeller 1000 IBU). There are more or less a physical limit to how much bitterness a beer can contain. According to Mikkeller 6½ kilogram of alpha-acid extract and 10 kilograms of simcoe-pellets was used per 1000 liters of beer! If you are not a brewer I can tell you it is a lot.

Last year the small Swedish brewery Slottskällan brewed a beer with a theoretical IBU of 0. The beer is named, you guessed it, Zero. It is a light hazy amber beer with a small white head an aroma of malt, caramel and grapefruit. The taste is medium bitter. The IBU is measured to 87 and it is a really nice and dry beer.